Did the BISD Superintendent inherit a mess?

By Amy Moore

Updated 10:21 am, Monday, March 31, 2014

Local business groups are calling for his resignation, state agencies are sharply critical of the school district he is leading, and a loudly vocal opposition hammers away every day, but the question persists - unanswered and maybe unanswerable: Is it Timothy Chargois' fault or did he simply inherit a mess from his predecessor, Carrol Thomas?

To understand Beaumont ISD's current distress, it is useful to recall what shape the district was in when Thomas arrived in 1995. The Enterprise attempted to contact Thomas to comment for this story at two different telephone numbers. He could not be reached.

In 1995, the district was in financial trouble, its schools were old and crumbling, and parents and students alike were confused about the school district's mission.

Thomas began to unify the district, settled its finances and aimed at a bond issue.

In 2007, voters rallied behind him and the district, passing a bond issue of almost $389 million with strong business community support.

Mike Getz, now a Beaumont city councilman, said the district at the time was "the most cohesive community you'd hope to get in Beaumont."

"Thomas had the chance to do something magical," he said.

But soon after the bond was passed, the problems started, Getz said.

Issues arose about how the money was being spent. Charges of cronyism commandeered the conversation, which became increasingly uncivil.

The board decided to name the new football stadium for Thomas, further splitting the community.

Thomas incensed many with a proposal to build a hotel next to the stadium on Interstate 10, diverting bond money for it, though the proposal dissolved in the din of dissent.

Thomas further antagonized a large portion of the community with his intention to tear down the historic South Park High School and build a new middle school there. Efforts to save the old Greenie home failed. On a Good Friday, a bucket loader tore into it. By the time Thomas retired in early 2013, he was the highest-paid superintendent in the state. In his wake, he left an embittered and divided community and a raft of legal issues for his successor to face.

Into that morass came Chargois, who served as an assistant superintendent under Thomas. With him came hope for a clean start.

"When Tim Chargois first took the position, I had high hopes," said David Bradley, who represents Beaumont on the State Board of Education. "I've certainly given him (Chargois) the opportunity to make his own way. He inherited a lot of problems and has been given opportunities to make it right."

A report from the Texas Education Agency specifically points the finger at the superintendent for failing to protect the district's finances in the wake of two employees' indictments for alleged embezzlement of $4 million.

To top it off, there's a ubiquitous group of citizens who sit at each board meeting with signs that read, "Resign now."

Chargois has repeatedly said he will not resign.

Debbie Ratcliff, a spokesperson with TEA, said the agency is closely watching the changing climate in Beaumont and takes into consideration when organizations come together and call for a superintendent's resignation.

"We've noted it and are paying attention to everything happening in Beaumont now," she said, adding that in the end, the superintendent's contract lies with the board of trustees.

Chargois told The Enterprise Thursday night after the school board meeting that there's a difference between criticism and cynicism - both of which are rampant in the community right now.

The challenge, he said, is using critical thinking and moving forward.

Board president Gwen Ambres said the process to get Beaumont ISD back on track doesn't involve placing blame on Chargois or his predecessor, Thomas.

"Do we need to be able to point a finger and place blame?," she asked. "Is that our goal to single someone out? Or is a better use of our time and talent to say, 'We have a gap here and this is the way things have gone on in the past but here's a better way and let's do things the better way.'"

Ambres said it's more productive to put all hands on deck, review policies and make sure errors don't happen again, no matter who is in charge.

Getz said Thomas planted the seeds that have produced the districts current crop of problems.

There is plenty of blame to go around.

"Chargois was here during Thomas' reign and he was aware of what was going on and he was aware of what he was getting into," Getz said. "He was complicit in it. He was in it up to his eyeballs."

Getz said Chargois has preserved Thomas' "culture," and no positive changes are possible without new leadership.

Beaumont physician and school district volunteer David Teuscher, once a key player in bond construction plans, echoed Getz.

He said the only way to move forward is to purge the administrators and school board from the top down.

"It's way past time for new leadership," Teuscher said. "I believe there are problems from way back and people in the community have lost faith in the board and administration."

Not everybody feels that way.

The local NAACP chapter earlier in March voiced support for the school district in general.

Paul Jones, NAACP executive director, said the district isn't perfect.

"We won't be able to clean it up by throwing rocks at each other," he said.

Education of students is the most important job, he said.

"We will all pay if we don't come together to solve this," he said.

Teuscher, who served on the citizen advisory board to 2007's $389 million school bond, said he's unsure how much blame lies with Thomas, but that Chargois, when he began his role as superintendent, had an opportunity to determine where the district's problems were and fix them. Instead, Teuscher said there's "a lack of leadership, a lack of fiscal discipline and lack of fiduciary discipline."

"There's more than enough blame to go around," he said. "I've never seen anything like this."

Teuscher said the district's current state is an embarrassment to its hard-working teachers, to students and to local residents.

The state board's Bradley said he has been disappointed in Chargois's leadership.

"He's shown inability," Bradley said of Chargois. "You are the chief operating officer and your job is to successfully run the district. He's either unwilling or unable. That's my personal observation."

But Bradley added that if Thomas was still running the district, the same would be said of him.

"If Thomas were here, they'd call for Thomas' resignation," he said. "It's total frustration on the part of the community. The community is just on edge. It's a dangerous situation."

It's like a dog pile at this point, he said.

BISD trustee Mike Neil, one of two trustees on the fractured board frequently at loggerheads with Chargois, said the only reason the community didn't call for Thomas' resignation was there "wasn't enough power or information."

Since organizations like TEA, the FBI and the Legislative Budget Board have come in and noted specific issues within the district, it has been easier to pin the problems on Chargois, the current leader.

"We didn't have that with Thomas," Neil said. "If Chargois was smart, he would resign before he gets shut out by the TEA. The handwriting's on the wall."